It took me forever to get to this book but I wasn't disappointed. The writing was really good, the world, characters and story was fantastic.

Renee is a BRILLIANT writer. Her world building is impeccable. Her romances subtle and yet you can’t help but be fully invested in them. Her characters are fleshed our, flawed yet loveable. One of my favourite writers.

This is a great book. Not a Mulan retelling A’s was initially advised. The only similarity is that the main characters dress like boys. And that’s it. Renee’s writing is as stunning and as flowery as always. Cannot wait to read the next instalments.

I started reading this, but then read about how it's culturally appropriating a Chinese story, and putting it in a Japanese setting. That's not something I can get on board with, so I put it down.

Flame in the Mist is a Mulan retelling and it is amazing. Mariko is a strong, determined young woman. It seems her destiny is to marry a prince. But on the way to her arranged marriage her carriage is captured, her servants killed and she herself, nearly murder. She evades capture and ends up part of the Black Clan seeking revenge.Mariko is a prisoner turned reluctant ally for the Black Clan as she seeks to find out who was behind her would be murder. She is a strong intellegent young woman. More capable than the world around her will allow. Her brother Kenshin is a Samuri soldier, who is detdermined to find his sister. Alive or dead. And then there is Black Clan's leader Takeda Ranmaru. He is definitely hiding something but will he be the one to reveal his secrets?There were some things that I did disagree in this book about, like if you believe someone is your enemy and your revenge is to kill them, why do you save them? Or you have a weapon of which you do not know what it does, why bring to the fight? I just sat there and thought that this is stupid.However, there was so many positive wonderful things about this book, that there is definitely too many to tell in this review. I loved the vivid descriptions, the characters, the relationships. I adored the mysterious and fantasy side. With the blood sucking trees and the ghosts.

Mulan is my favourite Disney film so this was a must-read for me as it's a Mulan retelling. I was blown away by the writing style and fleshed-out characters and found myself unable to put this down once I'd started. Can't wait for the sequel!

I wanted to love this book, I really did. I did enjoy it. But, it wasn’t as amazing as id been hoping. Maybe I’ve missed something? I don’t know… I like Mariko, she knew the way she was treated as a woman wasn’t right. But she didn’t really do much about it, until she pretended to be a man. The writing style was excellent, it kept me entertained. I’m very glad there was a glossary at the back of the book so I knew what everything was. That didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it any less. I think it works well, I certainly didn’t see the little twist coming. Looking forward to reading the follow up.

This was a bit of a slow burn for me, but once I got to grips with the style and the characters, I found it engrossing and evocative. It tells the story of Mariko, a young girl who is ambushed on her way to marry her betrothed. Dressing as a man, she attempts to infiltrate the Black Clan in an effort to discover why they tried to kill her. Ahdieh has chosen to write the narrative with quite a detached prose style, which made the plot a little hard to get into, but seems really appropriate for the nature of the characters and the society she is portraying. Emotions are kept very hidden but there seems to be an ocean of feeling lurking just below the surface for a number of the characters, which I found fascinating. Similarly, Ahdieh has a real skill in terms of description. Some of her prose in this regard is just stunning and I found myself swept up into a totally unfamiliar world. She drips little bits of enchantment here and there, but for the most part, this is a fantasy with very little magic. Instead, it reads like an historical novel, which really appealed to me. The final third of the book really upped the stakes and I raced through it. Luckily, I am able to move straight on to the second book as this does end on quite a cliffhanger and I am genuinely intrigued to see what will happen. Overall, I think if people are prepared to put a little effort into this book, they will definitely be rewarded.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I was looking forward to reading Flame in the Mist, because I had hearing that it's a Mulan re-telling of sorts. Unfortunately, I didn't end up enjoying it, and apart from the cross-dressing it read nothing like a Mulan re-telling.

The writing style was too flowery for my taste, and the long descriptions were so unnecessary. I felt like if I had skipped over some of the descriptive passages it would not have made a difference to the story.

I wasn't the biggest fan of Mariko. She repeatedly tells the reader how clever and skilled she is, but we never actually see that. It's all talk.

As far as the romance goes it completely came out of nowhere. Like once Okami found out she was a girl he was like you lied blah blah blah, and then suddenly they're making out. I mean, really?

Overall, Flame in the Mist was a disappointing read.

Decent young adult historical fantasy set in Japan. Had a great premise, and sounded promising with the Mulan comparison but other than the main character disguising herself as a boy that's about as far as it goes. I enjoyed it but found it a little on the slow side, and didn't care as much as I would have liked about the characters. I'll probably still read the next one.

(ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley)

Mariko is on her way to be married to a member of the royal family when her carriage is attacked and her companions murdered. Disguised as a boy, she sets out to find and infiltrate the notorious Black Clan, defend her family’s honour and discover who wants her dead and why. At the same time, her twin brother will stop at nothing to find her again, while others are scheming away in the background to manipulate events to suit their own agendas.

Mariko is a strong main character, and over the course of the novel she undergoes a real transformation. Disguised in a male dominated environment, the characteristics she was always taught to value above all others are useless and she has to learn from scratch the practical skills that others take for granted. As the novel progresses, she also has to come to terms with various home truths about herself and the world she was brought up in, casting off her privileges to become her own person for the first time in her life.

As a female in feudal Japan, she feels that her life has been mapped out for her based on duty and honour. She feels that her gender has her boxed into a corner with no other options available. However, her experiences and the characters that she meets help her to redefine herself, her relationships with the people around her and her place in the world.

I also really enjoyed reading about all of the different members of the Black Clan, their backgrounds and how they functioned as a group – and I found the history of the Samurai and it’s honour code fascinating.

The story itself is action packed and well paced, and I really enjoyed reading about the Japanese culture – although it took a while before I was fully immersed in it. I found a glossary of Japanese terms at the end of the ebook, which would have been helpful to know about while I was reading.

There were a couple of things that I didn’t enjoy. While Mariko is generally likeable, some of the decisions she makes are ridiculous. There a number of occasions where it felt like her actions were written in simply to force the plot along. I still don’t understand how spending more time in the forest alone with a gang of rogues and thieves would in any way help to restore her lost honour, which threw the whole premise of the novel onto shaky ground for me. There’s also a decision she makes closer to the end of the novel which defies all common sense and seems contrived just to bring some of the central characters into conflict.

I also wasn’t sure about the use of the supernatural in this book. It wasn’t really explained and I didn’t feel like it was properly built into the world the author had constructed – so much so that whenever it was mentioned it felt jarring and unnatural.

All in all though, this was an enjoyable read and I’ll definitely be looking out for the next in the series.

I really loved Ahdieh’s last book duology, The Wrath and the Dawn, so when I heard she was writing another book I obviously added it to my TBR. I then preceded to wait for reviews because I was wary all the same. The second book in The Wrath and the Dawn duology left me with some doubts. It introduced one of my favourite characters but it also left me rolling my eyes at the convenience of the ending. I then saw reviews for this book. Some were good some were bad and so when my request on Netgalley got approved (after the reviews had come in) and I was even warier and a little less excited to start it. Which is why I waited so very long to start.

Did I love this book as much as Ahdieh's last one? Probably not. Did I get sucked right in all the same? Damn straight I did.

The reason I wanted to read this, beyond recognising the name of the author, was because I was interested in the history and the actual setting of this book. Also, I knew that the MC dressed as a boy and attempted to find out why she was attacked but was led to question what she knew. I cannot attest to the accuracy of the Feudal Japan setting and the accuracy in the history and cultural elements but it appeared authentic and from what little I do know it was good. I would like to do more research into Japanese history, though, as I know the shift from feudalism to a more modern era was rapid and intriguing. I felt like there was more to the story than I could appreciate from my reading so I would be interested in learning some more about all of that because my historical learning about Japan was all post WW2 really.

I will say this book wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. I didn’t love everything, but it was damn enjoyable. I liked the characters. Mariko was smart and although she did suffer from thinking she was smarter than those around her and she had the blinders on when it came to her family. Yet, she grew a lot throughout the book. She wasn’t totally unwilling to recognise her flaws and although she often looked things in the wrong way she developed and I loved her for that. And the members of the Black Clan were many layered and interesting! I do wish that there was more background to the Black Clan members but I reckon that’s something that might be explored in the next book (we’ll see). The secondary characters probably needed a touch more growth and development.

I also felt like some of the story was predictable. A couple of twists at the end I didn’t see coming but then some I did. I can’t reveal what I did and didn’t expect but I did find my attention drifting at times because it felt familiar. I think this may be a problem for many a book lately. Maybe I’ve burned myself out a little with reading, I do a lot of it so I’m bound to notice familiar elements.

It was a good book and I enjoyed it and that surprised me. It doesn’t match my love for Ahdieh’s Wrath and the Dawn but I appreciated it and I hope the second book will be stronger in this series than the last one.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me this book to review.

Flame in the Mist is an ok fantasy book but it did not hold my interest and I found it forgettable. I didn’t like the romance as it really came across as Stockholm Syndrome as she fell for someone she believes tried to kill her and killed her friends, which is a massive turn off in romances for me. The world building, especially the magic was not explained well at all and even by the end of the story there were lots of unexplained parts.

With Mariko, I wish Ahdieh has shown not told us how smart, resourceful, and observant she is, as I saw hardly any of them qualities in her during this book. The rest of the characters I didn’t really care about them apart from Kenshin, who I understood his motives and his loyalty towards his family.

I was indifferent towards this book which is disappointing as I was looking forward to it.

I was eagerly awaiting this book. It is a retelling of Mulan and after all the hype surrounding The Wrath and the Dawn (which I have not read), I was keen to check out this book.

I'd only got a couple of chapters in when I knew this book was not going to be for me. I felt that the story moved far too slowly and there wasn't a lot happening. I also found it quite confusing with all the different names and I struggled to keep up with who was who.

I didn't feel that I connected to any of the characters in this book. I found myself quite bored whilst reading this as nothing seemed to be happening. Things did start to pick up towards the end but by this point, I had already lost interest.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me and it has put me off reading her other books. Looking at other reviews people have said that the writing style is very similar to her other books and I think that is one of the things that I didn't like about this book.

I enjoyed this book, but didn't really see it as the big “Mulan” retelling many have labelled it as. Not only is the story set in Japan, but the pages carry hints of mythology, dashes of fantasy and a nice slow-burn romance. I will most definitely be reading the next book.

Mariko knows her greatest weapon is her mind. Yet being born a girl, she grimly accepts her fate to marry and remain silent like any good future empress should. But when her carriage is attacked and Mariko left for dead, she rises from the ashes and sets out to find the men responsible for her supposed demise.

Disguising herself as a boy, she succeeds in infiltrating the enemy camp, but there she discovers more than just her family’s best kept secret. For the first time Mariko’s opinions are valued, and she learns there is more to these thugs and thieves then she could ever have imagined. Now Mariko must choose between following her heart… or protecting her family from the man she loves…

I enjoyed this story, but it was slow to start and took me a few chapters to sink into. It wasn't until I was nearly a third of the way through that I became really invested in the story, but after that point the pacing really picked up and I devoured the rest in a night.

And boy does this book pack it all. Samurai, Ninja, Demons, Magic, Emperors, Betrayals… the list goes on and on. These elements were creatively woven together to produce some great imagery that made for a winding tale dotted with hidden twists and surprises.

However in terms of world building, I occasionally struggled to keep track of all the politics and reasons behind who was fighting who and for what reason. The same with the magic system. I didn't fully grasp the mechanics of it, especially since the magic exploded into the story nearer the end of the book. However I’m sure this will be explained more in book 2. Yet despite these few gripes, I still really enjoyed this book. The descriptions were detailed and the prose flowed very smoothly.

As for the characters, I think many girls will relate to the heroine, Mariko. While not physically strong, she was in no way a helpless maiden. She put effort into learning new skills, while calling on her other, hard-won abilities to ensure her own survival.

Having said that, another gripe I had was that we spent the first half of the book hearing (generally from Mariko herself) about just how clever she was, but we didn't really get to see her sharp mind put to use until near the end. I often found myself questioning her decisions throughout the story, but then again, the plot was often fuelled by her choices which led to the story’s progression.

Romance also has a part, but it’s a back burner to the main plot. However the unexpected love adds extra conflict and intrigue to the plot and I’m looking forward to seeing how it develops.

The Black Clan were also a very diverse group of characters, and I really hope in the next book we get to dip more into their backstories. I’m also intrigued to see the fates of everyone else mentioned. The ending wove in plenty of new subplots which I’m sure will expand the world and perhaps even add in a few more POVs to the story.

All in all - FLAME IN THE MIST was a nice read. While I’m not thirsting for the next book, I’m definitely hooked enough to pick it up. I’m also very much in love with this cover! It's gorgeous!

3 stars!

Interesting setting I haven't read about before and well-written.

Flame In The Mist is a book I’ve been looking forward to reading for so long but inexplicably hadn’t picked up until now. So I was kind of nervous that I might have built it up too much in my head, but actually I really enjoyed this novel.

Mariko is of the Hattori family, the only daughter of a prominent Samurai. Her twin brother Kenshin is a renowned warrior known as the Dragon of Kai. Unlike her brother, Mariko has no control over her life. A girl in her position must do as her father wishes and her father has lofty ideas for her, securing a betrothal to the Emperor’s son, Raiden.

While travelling from her home to meet Raiden in the imperial city, her party is attacked within the Junkai forest – she is the intended target. Escaping with her life as the sole survivor, Mariko suspects the outlaw Black Clan at being behind her attack. Wandering alone through the dangerous Jukai forest Mariko hatches a plan to take control of her own life and dress as a peasant boy in order to infiltrate the Clan to try and uncover who exactly wants her dead and why. Meanwhile, her twin is convinced that Mariko has survived the attack and is doing all he can to find and rescue his sister.

I really did enjoy this book. Ahdieh’s descriptions make for great scene-setting, helping to sweep the reader up in the story.

Mariko is smart and strong-willed. She’s the type of female protagonist I tend to like, one who taps into her previously unknown depth of strength. Her interactions with the Black Clan, a group of men, thieves, who live together in the woods, are interesting. Led by Ranmanu, supported by his best friend Okami, I quickly came to like this group that Mariko suspects of her attempted murder. I really like the relationship between Ranmanu and Okami, but it was the ongoing war of words between Okami and Mariko that I really enjoyed. Somewhat predictably, the mysterious character of Okami was my favourite person in this tale.

As an aside – I received a candle from In The Wick of Time that was based upon this book (in the Fairyloot box that also contained this book). Even before reading the book the “wood smoke and warm stone” scented candle became an absolute favourite of mine. Now, knowing that it is based on my favourite character Okami, I think I’m going to need to buy a new one – mine’s all burnt out! (find it here)

I’ve seen people talk about how “predictable” this book is and I guess in a way they are right, but that didn’t impact on my enjoyment of this book at all.

Two things did bother me though. They are spoilery though so I’ll hide them below.

First of all, in pretending to be a boy, where did Mariko pee?!! Haha, I mean I know it’s not integral to the story but how did she hide her inability to urinate while standing up?! Secondly, when Kenshin enters the teahouse, Mariko is said to see ” a face to mirror her own”. Now, after Ranmanu and Okami see the Dragon of Kai with their own eyes, how do they not realise that Mariko is his lost, supposedly dead sister? Albeit her assailants thought her dead, surely this would make them consider this mysterious new boy in their midst who appeared after the massacre and looks JUST like Kenshin? That bugged me! « Hide Spoiler
All in all though, I really enjoyed this book. I did however find the end was a bit rushed. I felt that it didn’t have the same flow as the rest of the book. That said, maybe I just didn’t want it to end? Bring on book two!

Thank you to netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was also the fairyloot book for May so I was inundated with copies, but I'm not complaining. The cover for the UK paperback has just been revealed as well and I kind of need it to be honest.

After Mariko is attacked in the forest on her way to meet her future husband she assumes a disguise of a male to find out who wants her dead and why and takes up living in the forest with a band of thieves.

This was probably one of my most anticipated books of the year and whilst it wasn't a favourite it was really good. I really liked the main characters and the world building. It felt really cohesive and Ahdieh had put a lot of thought into the world. I find this applaudable in authors when they write very different fantasy world's but have such good world building, as I'm aware Ahdieh's other series is more Middle Eastern in inspiration and this is East Asian/mainly Japanese inspired. The magical parts really intrigued me as we don't get to see much of it in this novel but there is definite murmurs of it and a bit of build up.

There was some mix up with the PR with this book where some people thought it was a Mulan retelling, which it isn’t, it has some inspiration taken from Mulan and there were definitely a couple parts that I picked up on this and really enjoyed when I realised. Like the scene in Mulan where she’s bathing and the guys all come along, that makes somewhat of an appearance.

There was a lot of Japanese terms in this book but Ahdieh presented then well enough that I rarely found myself going to the glossary because her writing gave enough context for the reader to understand exactly what she meant.

At times the book did feel a little bit slow, but it wasn’t hard to read. The pacing varied a bit so some parts I flew through and some parts were a bit heavier. Now I don’t have a problem with this but I just wanted to note it.

I cannot wait for the next book because I have no idea what’s going to happen but I know there’s gonna be some wild magic stuff in it.

Okay, I will have to be honest: from the way everyone was talking about Flame in the Mist on social media, I was let to believe the story would have way more fantasy elements than it actually did. Not that there is no fantasy to Flame in the Mist, because they are. But, I don't know, I went into the book with ideas of element-bending and animal shape-shifting. And, let me tell you, it was quite the disappointment when I finally understood that Flame in the Mist simply wasn't that kind of a book.

The story follows Mariko, on her way to the imperial palace where she is meant to marry the Emperor's son. Except things do not go as planned, her convoy is attacked, her samurais and handmaiden killed, and Mariko finds herself seeking revenge on the Black Clan. Which leads her to joining them, first to attack them from within, then as an actual member of the clan. Flame in the Mist deals with fallen heroes, family duties and undying loyalty.

Funnily enough, Flame in the Mist isn't my first Mulan-inspired story this year, since I read Noteworthy earlier this year. But where Noteworthy was so good at dealing with the LGBT+ undertones that come with a Mulan retelling, the same ideas fall flat with Flame in the Mist. Not only doesn't Okami develop feelings for her when Mariko presents as a boy, beside some massive anger and resentment, but it shifts to instalove literally five seconds after he discovers she was a girl all along. Which doesn't sit well with me at all.

Maybe because I went into the book thinking it was heavy on magic, but I also felt like the story could have been so much more than it actually was. Especially when you have hints of shape-shifting all the while having a character nicknamed The Wolf. Or when you keep referencing to the elements of water and fire when describing the characters. Or when you literally have a chapter called The Phoenix while your book showcase a big, golden bird on the cover. There is so much lost potential to this story that it almost left me disappointed when I reached the last page. I don't know if it will be used in the sequel, but it definitely should have been in this book!

Nonetheless, Flame in the Mist's storyline is a solid one. All the characters have compelling stories and motives, and they bounce off each other really well. I particularly liked the dynamics within the Black Clan, and how everyone has an important role to play in this small community. And the book featured two fascinating sibling dynamics, which always is a weakness of mine.

I have never read any other book by Ahdieh before, even though The Wrath and The Dawn has been on my kindle for months, but I really fell in love with her prose. The way she writes kept me coming back to the story every time I was putting the book down. (Fun story: I read Flame in the Mist all through my moving out, during too many back and forth using London's tube, dragging heavy suitcases around.) (Would not recommend.) The writing gave a magical aspect to the story, and made it almost impossible to put it down even for five minutes. Which, let me tell you, doesn't happen that often to me those days!

Mariko is on her way to the capital to marry the Emperor's son, but her convoy is attacked by the Black Clan and Mariko barely escapes.
Determined to discover who wants her dead, Mariko disguises herself as a boy and works her way into the camp of the Black Clan. Mariko intends to befriend the leader of the clan, Ranmaru, whose best friend, Okami, possesses a strange power.
Will Mariko learn who paid the Black Clan to murder her and prevent her marriage to the Emperor's son?
Will Mariko's gender remain secret?

As someone who often has unpopular opinions when it comes to books everyone else loves, I was worried that Flame in the Mist would be one of the books that I didn't like as much as everyone else. However, I really enjoyed it (thank the Book Gods!).
I found it refreshing to read a Japanese-themed book for a change, having read quite a few sci-fi books recently.
I liked Mariko and how she rebelled by creating inventions in a society where women have little to no control over their lives. She was smart and eager for knowledge.
Mariko's love interest wasn't who I thought it would be, which was a nice change. The romance was believable and didn't seem rushed. I loved the scenes between Mariko and the love interest (I won't say who it was to keep it a surprise), and found myself smiling a lot while reading them.
The plot was interesting and had a few twists, some of which I saw coming, some I didn't.
The writing style was almost poetic at times and grabbed my attention from the beginning.

Overall this was a very enjoyable read that I would recommend.